Hello Ghost! (2023)

Heartfelting and Wholesome<3

THIS MOVIE WAS AMAZINGGG!! Made me be so indulged, cry so muchhh, and hooked on it to the very end and oh my did the actors do their parts and roles great. This movie makes you get so attached to the story and the characters in it and shows how life is more than you may take it for and there is so much more to come to you if you just live and don't ever give up and even if you feel like your at your all time low that there will be those that will stay by your side even if you feel like you have no one. Just know that yourself can be your biggest enemy in life but you got to fight through you tribulations you may go through if you just try and keep moving forward. So overall this movie shows how you may be in a rough patch and feel like your alone when there will be that 1 person there by your side to help you keep going without you even knowing and that you got to take time to realize your self worth because you are worth more than you think you are<33

Read More

"When you have it you don't want it, when you don't have it you want it"

Hello Ghost is a remake of the 2010 Korean movie by the same name. It is a comedic movie with the dark thread of gut-wrenching loneliness running through it for one man.

Ah Wei has been alone his whole life. On his 21st attempted suicide he briefly stops breathing. His life is saved by a pretty EMT on the way to the hospital. When he awakens, he can see four ghosts who refuse to leave him alone. A shaman tells him he must grant their wishes before they will leave, not an easy task for these ghosts. There’s the older woman, crying woman, smoking man, and mischievous little boy. The four lead him on a merry chase getting him into all sorts of trouble. He also keeps running into Yu Xiao Yin, the EMT.

Unlike so many ghost stories, there was no threatening entity, no mystery to resolve. The ghosts appeared to want to have a good time. The only external threat was to Xiao Yin’s brother who was deeply in debt to loan sharks which also made her life miserable.

The comedic moments often bordered on cringe-worthiness although there were some genuinely funny scenes. The slapstick didn’t feel as over the top with this version. Aside from trying to make you laugh Hello Ghost also tried to touch your heart, deeply enough to hear it beat. This story would have benefited from more backstory for Ah Wei, and why he never created a family or friends for himself. Why would a hospital kick a suicidal patient out without any mental health counseling, especially after he admitted to hearing voices? Why was Xiao Yin so attracted to Ah Wei who had attempted suicide multiple times and talked to people who weren’t there? As with the Korean version, the ending saves this movie and gives it meaning. Even knowing how it ended, I still teared up.

As good as parts of this movie were, like with the original, it left me disappointed that the rest of the film wasn’t as moving as the final ten minutes. Hello Ghost is a movie that with more character development and either less or better slapstick might have been as deep as it wanted to be. Overcoming hopelessness is not an easy fix. Despite its shortcomings, if you’re prepared to be patient, Hello Ghost is a movie worth trying.

2 February 2024

Read More

Now this is what I like to call, a remake done right

The original movie is iconic and forever engraved herein in the hearts of those who saw it. I recommend watching it for those you haven't yet. However, this remake certainly hits differently. It's a bit sadder, more poignant and yet it retains a certain beauty to it with the message it delivers. I think it's mostly because of Jing Hua's ability to portray emotions like he does in his roles, and in here is no different. Or the way they made this storyline become even more symbolic with every single detail.

Honestly, I really enjoyed the pace of how this remake was made.

The changes into the plot were nicely done, the most important details and essence of the original movie from 2010 was kept and replayed with the same lines and meaning and even improved in some ways in this version of 2023. They balanced out the comedy breaks with the blue vibes and sensible theme this story already has quite evenly. The flow of the whole composition as well as the connection between the two main characters made more sense in here. I even have to praise that the dynamics of the four ghosts felt more in unity too, oh and let's not forget that the new integrated elements, the changes of characters, their professions or life troubles, and overall moral messages turned all of this remake into a great symbolic masterpiece.

A word of advice I can give, is to try and read between the lines. Since, every sentence has a deep meaning.

Praise to whoever thought of using Tamagotchi toys in this remake. For example, in the original it uses Bopki also known as Dalgona candy which is no less iconic in providing some sweetness to such a bittersweet life. The value of both elements varies from Korea to Taiwan and the contribution to the plot. However, it's the sole part of raising the Tamagotchi pet, caring for it's basic needs, making all kind of efforts to prevent it from dying, or just the meaning of a new start that is beyond thoughtful. :')

Incredible how the noise they make can resemble heartbeats. :')

There are parts that will make you laugh and question when the sadness will start. Truth be told it hits more than once, but it's all worthy until the end. The cinematography is great and the effects are good enough too. This movie really makes you value the little things that we often take for granted and revaluate life and death priorities, or the importance of second chances in forgiveness and the will to try again. Although it deals with sensitive topics... the message it tries to convey is more of a beacon of hope to those of us who have been or are still lost for quite sometime now and on the brink of giving up... No one is truly born and living "alone" in this world, there is always a connection with anyone we meet in our lives, and that leaves a mark. A mark we chose to neglect or to remember, to cherish or to hate it, to embrace or to surrender. After all, amid all the laughter there can be some hidden pain, amid endless tears there can be a strong painful motive, amid any troublesome addiction there can be a guilty conscious, amid every heart aching loneliness there can be a strong desire of a loving bond or dream of a family.

For all that and more I actually recommend both movies. The original and this remake are worth watching.
Take your personal pick on which one you manage to like best. I liked the original, and yet loved the remake. ;)

Read More

Inconsistent quality

I found this film okay but I started to lose focus around the halfway point as it wasn’t doing much to keep me gripped. HOWEVER, watching the ending made me wish I’d paid more attention to the rest of the film.

The ending was unexpected (for me at least) but I personally thought it was a good way to end the film. I just wish it had been that good the whole way through!

The acting was quite good, especially at the end, but I can’t particularly remember any of the music - I can’t say it really added anything to the film.

I wouldn’t watch it again unless it was a ghosts last wish, but it was fine for one watch.

Read More